Waste disposer



R. J. STOUT WASTE DISPOSER Feb. 22, 1966 INVENTOR ROLLA J.$TOUT BY MM 5Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Oct. 26, 1962 ATTORNEY Feb. 22, 1966 :5Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed 001;. 26, 1962 T. M U 4 ms V. NJ A I- L O RATTORNEY Feb. 22, 1966 R. .1. STOUT WASTE DISPOSER 3 Sheets-Sheet 5Filed Oct. 26, 1962 mvsmon non. J.sTou-r IY A44 ATTORNEY United StatesPatent 3,236,462 WASTE DISPOSER Roll-a J. Stout, Danville, Ill.,assignor to FMC Corporation, San Jose, Calili, a corporation of DelawareFiled Oct. 26, 1962, Ser- No. 233,283 3 Claims. (Cl. 241-60) Thisinvention pertains to waste disposal units, and more particularly, to animproved disposer -for comminuting food wastes of the size and typefound in restaurant kitchens.

Certain problems have been associated with waste disposers known in theart. These problems include the jamming of the disposer by bones,clogging of discharge orifices by a cohesive mass of waste material,violent ejection of waste material from a feed hopper, failure to grindto the necessary degree of fineness, and inefficient comminuting actionrequiring a large power input. The waste disposer of the presentinvention includes many features which cooperate to overcome theseproblems to a large extent.

An object of the present invention is to provide an improved disposer'for rapidly grinding waste products to a size which will permitdisposal, through normal plumbing into a sewer.

Another object is to provide a disposer in which waste material iscomminuted with a maximum efficiency to a desired size.

Another object of the invention is to provide a disposer whereincentrifugal force causes waste material to be extruded through aperturesin a sizing ring.

Another object is to provide a disposer in which a jet of water cleanswaste material from apertures in a sizing ring and flushes the wastematerial through a drain passageway.

Another object is to provide a disposer having a simplified assembly ofparts which can be removed from their mounting for replacement andrepair without breaking any plumbing connections.

Another object is to provide a disposer having a sizing ring that can beinverted after becoming worn and thus double the effective life of thering.

Another object is to provide a disposer which operates with a minimum ofoperational noise.

Another object is to provide an improved sizing ring for a garbagedisposer.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent from thefollowing detailed description, reference being made to the annexeddrawings, in which:

FIGURE 1 is a perspective of a waste disposer having portions brokenaway to illustrate the present invention.

FIGURE 2 is a vertical section taken centrally through the sizing ringof the disposer of FIGURE 1.

FIGURE 3 is a horizontal section taken on lines 3-3 of FIGURE 1.

FIGURE 4 is a vertical section showing a modified arrangement of thewater inlet and discharge outlets of the disposer, the view being takenat a position on the modified disposer corresponding to the positionindicated by line 4-4 of FIG. 3.

With reference to FIGURE 1, the waste disposer includes a grinderhousing 12, a grinding unit 14 including an apertured shredder ring 14Aand a rotor 14B, and a drive motor 16. The grinder housing 12 has anupper cylindrical portion 18 which provides a hopper into which materialto be comminuted is dropped. A closure cap ring 20 is secured to the topof the feed hopper by cap screws 22 which extend through the closure capring into internally threaded holes, not shown, in the upper rim of thefeed hopper. A flexible diaphragm 24 is positioned between the upper rimof the feed hopper and the lower surface of the closure cap ring. Thisdiaphragm acts as a splash guard to prevent the ejection of materialfrom the feed hopper. Furthermore, the diaphragm tends to reduceoperational noise from the waste disposer while permitting wastematerial to freely flow into the disposer.

At the lower end of the feed hopper 18 is a flared portion 26 whichextends radially outward and downward from the hopper. A lower enclosure28 projects downward from the outer peripheral portion of the flaredportion. A plurality of ribs 30 extend between the hopper and the flaredportion to provide support. The internal diameter of the cylindricalshaped feed hopper is less than that of the grinding unit 14 so that aguard ledge 32 (FIG. 2) overlies the grinding unit. This guard ledgeprevents waste material from being violently ejected upwardly into thehopper and further reduces the operational noise. Also, material that isnot small enough to pass through the discharge apertures of the grindermust be recirculated for further treatment. It was discovered that toaccomplish this recirculation without causing jamming between the rotorand the overhanging ledge 32, the undersurface of the guard ledge 32should be inclined upwardly and inwardly at about 15 degrees to thehorizontal as shown in FIG. 2. With this inclination, the waste materialis guided inwardly along a trajectory that eliminates jamming andfacilitates recirculation of the material.

A plurality of holes 34 (FIG. 1) extend through an outer rim 35 of theflared portion 26 of the housing. Internally threaded holes 36 areprovided in an upper surface 37 of the lower enclosure 28 to align withthe holes 34. The flared portion 26 and the lower enclosure 28 are thussecured together by cap screws 38. A V- shaped downwardly projectingring 40 is formed on the undersurface of the outer rim 35 of the flaredportion 26, and fits within a corresponding V-shaped notch 42 in theupper surface 37 of the lower enclosure 28. This projection andcorresponding notch aid in the centering of the flared portion on thelower enclosure and form a seal so that no gasket is requiredtherebetween. Furthermore, the projection acts as a key to resistlateral forces which might tend to cause slippage of the membersrelative to each other.

As shown in FIGURES 1 and 3, a water inlet 44 and a waste materialoutlet 46 are provided in the lower enclosure 28. An annular dischargepassage 47 is enclosed by the lower enclosure 28 and is in communicationwith the water inlet and waste outlet. As shown in FIG. 3, the waterinlet has a rear wall 44A arranged to direct water into the housingalong a path that is substantially tangential to the annular dischargepassage. Since the rotor 14B is rotating counterclockwise (FIG. 3), thematerial is traveling in a counterclockwise direction along thedischarge passage 47 toward outlet 46, and the spray of water from inlet44 aids in the smooth movement of the material.

A plurality of internally threaded holes 48 (FIGS. 1 and 2) are providedin the bottom of the lower enclosure to receive hex head screws 50. Anadapter plate 52 having bayonet slots 53 is secured to the lowerenclosure 28 by the hex head screws. The upper portion 52A of theadapter plate 52 fits tightly within a central tapered bore 54 (FIG. 2)of the lower enclosure 28. A rectangular notch 55 is provided in theadapter plate at a point spaced outwardly from the upper portion 52A. An0- ring seal 56 fits within the rectangular notch to provide a watertight seal between the adapter plate and the lower enclosure.

The sizing ring 14A of the grinding unit 14 has a lower annular rim 57which fits within a groove 58 on the upper ring 14A has a plurality ofperforations 59 through which the comminuted waste material passes toreach the annular drain passage 47. These perforations are flaredoutwar-dly so that the diameter of the perforation on the inner surfaceof the sizing ring is less than the diameter of the perforation at theouter surface of the sizing ring.

This outward flare aids in preventing the perforations from becomingplugged. Projecting inwardly from the vertical surface of the sizingring 14A are a plurality of lugs 60 which are of a generally rectangularshape and a plurality of lugs 62 which extend diagonally along the innervertical surface of the sizing ring.

As previously mentioned, in prior disposer units an excessive amount ofjamming of the material being comminuted occurred and poor circulationof material was experienced. In connection with the present invention,it was discovered that the ratio of the height H of the shredder ring14A to its internal diameter affected the performance of the disposer.Thus, it was found that the ratio of the height to the diameter shouldbe in a range of between 0.33 to 1 and 0.6 to 1. When the ratio is lessthat 0.33 to 1, jamming of bones and other material occurs in anexcessive amount. Above a ratio of 0.6 to 1, the grinding unit takes anunduly long time to clear itself. In one successful disposer constructedin accord vance with the present invention, a ring having an internaldiameter of 5.165" and a height of 3.012 was used, said ring having aratio of 0.584 to 1. Another successful disposer has a ring with aninternal diameter of 6.750", a height of 3.500" and, therefore, a heightto diameter ratio of 0.518 to 1.

The number of perforations 59 and the diameter of the perforations onthe inner and outer sides of the sizing ring 14A are extremely importantto the operation of the waste disposer 11.0. The number of perforationsshould be within the range of between 116 and 220. When less than 116perforations are used in the sizing ring, the ability of the ring topermit passage of ground material is limited to such an extent that itis commercially unacceptable. When more than 220 perforations are used,the strength of the ring will be weakened to an undesirable extent. Amaximum discharge is achieved with a shredding ring having about 150perforations and such a ring is, of course, strong enough for use ingrinding ordinary restaurant waste including bones.

The optimum diameter of the perforations 59 at the interior surface ofthe sizing ring is between one-quarter of an inch and three-eighths ofan inch. Below onequarter of an inch, the capacity is reduced to anextent such that the sizing ring is commercially unacceptable while adiameter greater than three-eighths of an inch, will not reduce thewaste material to desired particle size. The most desirable perforationconfiguration resembles a frustum of a cone having one-quarter inchdiameter at the inner surface of the sizing ring and a three-eighthsinch diameter on the outer surface of the sizing ring, while the wallthickness of the ring is three-sixteenths of an inch. The axis of theperforation is radial to the ring and the outward flare of theperforations tends to prevent waste material from plugging theperforations.

The lugs 60 and 62 on the shredder ring provide a unique, efiicient comminuting action due to their particular configuration, dimensions andcoaction with the rotor 14B. The vertical length of the lugs 62 alongthe height Such a width provides sufficient strength and surface area toaccommodate normal wear on each vertical edge. The depth of the lugs, asindicated by the letter D in FIG. 2 should be at least 0.050 of an inch.A depth D less than this minimum size would reduce the cutting actionand the grin-ding capacity to such an extent that the disposer would beunacceptable. In the previously mentioned disposer having a shredderring with an internal diameter of 5.165", the depth of the lugs was0.105", and in the ring of 6.75 diameter, the lugs had a depth of 0.094.

The lugs and 62 should be arranged on the inner surface of the ring insuch a manner that the vertical clearance between the adjacent lugs iszero, when the lugs overlap, or is a maximum of one-eighth of an inch.Should the clearance be greater than one-eighth of an inch, particles ofwaste material will tend to fill up the clearance area and thus impairthe cutting action. The perforations 59 and the lugs 60 and 62 arearranged in a symmetrical pattern so that the sizing ring may beinverted and the general pattern will be the same. When the cuttingedges of the lugs become worn on one side, inverting the sizing ringpresents a new cutting edge for each lug. This feature doubles the lifeof the sizing ring.

The rotor 14B is disposed on the upper end of a sleeve 66 whichencircles the upper end of the drive shaft 68. The rotor 14B is discshaped and has an annular groove .70 on the under surface adjacent thesleeve 66. An annular projection 72 on the upper surface of the adapterplate 52 fits within the groove '70 and thus restricts the flow of waterand waste material inwardly towards the drive shaft 68. A pair ofaligned radially projecting cutting bars 74 (FIGS. 1 and 3) projectupwardly from the surface of the rotor at the outer periphery, and apair of radially projecting cutting blades 76 project downwardly fromthe lower surface of the rotor, said blades 76 being aligned anddisposed perpendicular to a line passing through the cutting bars 74.

The adapter plate 52 has a hub portion 78 directly below the annularprojection 72. A motor shaft seal 80 is seated in the lower portion ofthe hub between sleeve 66 and the hub 78. This seal prevents the passageof water along the outer surface of the sleeve 66 and into the motor 16.A slinger 82 is locked between the sleeve 66 and a shoulder on the driveshaft 68 and overlies the end of the motor so as to collect any waterwhich might fall thereon and hurl it in a radially outward direction bycentrifugal force clue to the rotation of the slinger.

The adapter plate 52 is fastened to the motor 16 by a plurality of capscrews 84 only one being shown in FIG. 1. The rotor 14B fits over thedrive shaft 68 and is locked on the shaft .by a capscrew 86 which bearsagainst a washer 88. It is to be noted that, when the rotor 14B issecured on shaft 68, the sleeve 66 is also looked in position.

The drive motor 16, the rotor 14B, the adapter 52, and

' the shredder ring 14A make up an integral assembly which is bolted tothe lower end of the grinder housing 12 by the hex head bolts 50. Aspreviously described, the motor and the grinder unit may be readilyremoved from the grinder housing by loosening the hex head bolts androtating the motor slightly so that the heads of the bolts will registerwith the enlarged portion of the bayonet slots 53, permitting the unitto thus drop free of the grinder housing without disturbing the plumbingconnections to the water inlet opening 44 or the waste discharge opening46.

In operation, waste material is inserted into the feed hopper 18together with sufficient water to make a thin slurry of theCOIIllITllI'llltBd material. The waste material flows downward onto therotor 14B and is thrust outwardly against the inner surface of theannular sizing ring MA by the centrifugal force developed by the rotor.As

the waste is propelled against the lugs 60 and 62, it is chopped intosmall pieces by the cutting bars 74. The small particles are forcedoutwardly through the perforations 59 while material which does not passthrough the perforations moves either upwardly or downwardly along theinner surface of the sizing ring. The lugs 62 slope diagonally downwardin the direction of rotation of the rotor .64, thus causing wastematerial to be deflected towards the rotor. Some of the small particleswill pass between the sizing ring and the rotor and thus fall on theupper surface of the adapter plate 52. The cutting blades 76 on thelower surface of the rotor sweep the particles outwardly against thesizing ring 14A to grind them and to prevent particles of waste frommoving inwardly under the rotor. When these particles have been choppedfine enough by the cutting blades 76, they pass outwardly through thelowermost apertures and are collected and transported along the annulardrain passage 47. Other waste particles which move upwardly along thevertical inner surface of the sizing ring are guided by the guard edge32 inwardly towards the center of the rotor whereupon they arerecirculated and forced outwardly again, to he comminuted by the cuttingbars 74 and forced through the perforations 59.

A jet of water is directed into the drain passage 47 through the waterinlet 44. This jet of water tends to clean the outer surface of thesizing ring 14A and assists in carrying away the waste particles alongthe drain passage. A modification of the water inlet is illustrated inFIGURE 4. While the water inlet 44 shown in FIGURE 3 is generallyparallel to discharge outlet 46 and has a right angle bend immediatelyupon entering the drain passage 47, the water inlet 44' shown in FIGURE4, extends transversely above the discharge outlet 46 and is arrangedabove to direct a jet of water tangentially into the discharge passage47'.

From the foregoing description, it will be apparent that the wastedisposer of the present invention includes a unique relationship ofparts which cooperate to provide an improved cutting action resulting inmore efiicient operation without jamming, clogging or violently ejectingWaste material therefrom,

The fact that the ratio of the height of the shredder ring to itsdiameter has an important effect on the performance of a garbagedisposer is considered to be a discovery of consideration and theteaching of the present specification concerning the optimum range ofratio is a definite contribution to this art.

Similarly the present disclosure of the optimum number of perforationsin the shredder ring, and the size and generally frusto-conicalconfiguration of the perforations contribute to a large degree inattaining fast, smooth discharge of material.

The upwardly and inwardly inclined ledge on the lower end of thecylindrical feed housing provides a unique, material-recirculationaction within the disposer and prevents jamming of material under thisledge.

Another unique feature of the present invention resides in the discoverythat the ratio of the height of each tooth to the height of the shredderring of one to four or less precludes excess jamming and an inefficientaction. While disposers disclosed in prior patents have had cuttingteeth within this range, none of these prior art patents have disclosedthe use of teeth within the specified range in such a pattern and soarranged relative to the path of the rotor that no waste materialbecomes hung-up or stratified on the inner face of the shredder ringbetween the teeth of the ring.

It will be understood that modifications and variations of theembodiments of the waste disposer disclosed herein may be resorted towithout departing from the spirit of the invention and the scope of theappended claims.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire toprotect by Letters Patent is:

1. A comminuting apparatus comprising, a flared upper housing having anouter annular rim with a V-shaped projection depending therefrom; alower housing having an upper surface with a corresponding annularV-shaped notch to receive said projection whereby the flared upperhousing and the lower housing are aligned and sealed together; a motordriven rotor rotatably mounted on said lower housing and disposedbetween said lower housing and said upper housing; said upper housingbeing provided with a feed chamber and an annular ledge overlying theperiphery of said rotor; said ledge being provided with a frusto-conicalsurface facing said rotor and subtending an angle of substantially 15degrees from a plane transverse to the axis of rotation of said rotor; asizing ring releasably mounted between the outer periphery of said ledgeand said lower housing, said sizing ring being provided with between 116and 200 frustoconical shaped perforations, the diameter of eachperforation at the inner surface of said sizing ring being within therange of one-quarter inch to three eighths inch and the diameter of eachperforation at the outer surface of said sizing ring being greater thansaid diameter at said inner surface; said sizing ring being providedwith a multiplicity of lugs projecting inwardly from said inner surfaceat least 0.05 of an inch, said lugs having a width corresponding to thelength of an are along said inner surface subtending an angle ofapproximately five degrees around the axis of said rotor, said lugsbeing further arranged so that there is no more than one eighth of aninch of vertical clearance between the adjacent top and bottom portionsof successive lugs, said sizing ring, said upper housing, and said lowerhousing defining an annular drain passage surrounding said sizing ring,said lower housing being provided with a waste outlet from said drainpassage and a water inlet; and means for directing a jet of water fromsaid water inlet into said drain passage tangentially of said sizingring to flush waste material from said apertures and said drain passageinto said waste outlet; said sizing ring having a height to internaldiameter ratio in the range of from 0.33 to 1 to 0.60 to l.

2. A comminuting apparatus comprising a motor driven rotor, a housingprovided with a feed chamber and an annular ledge overlying theperiphery of said rotor, said ledge being provided with a frusto-conicalsurface facing said rotor and subtending an angle of substantiallyfifteen degrees from a plane transverse to the axis of rotation of saidrotor, and a sizing ring releasably mounted between the outer peripheryof said ledge and said housing, said sizing ring being provided withbetween 116 and 200 frusto-conical shaped perforations, the diameter ofeach perforation at the inner surface of said sizing ring being withinthe range of one-quarter inch to three eighths inch and the diameter ofeach perforation at the outer surface of said sizing ring being greaterthan said diameter at said inner surface; said sizing ring beingprovided with a multiplicity of lugs projecting inwardly from said innersurface at least 0.05 of an inch, said lugs having a width correspondingto the length of an are along said inner surface subtending an angle ofapproximately five degrees around the axis of said rotor, said sizingring and said housing defining an annular drain passage surrounding saidsizing ring, said sizing ring having a height to internal diameter ratioin the range of from 0.33 to 1 to 0.60 to 1.

3. A comminuting apparatus comprising a motor driven rotor, a housingprovided with a feed chamber and an annular ledge overlying theperiphery of said rotor, said ledge being provided with a frusto-conicalsurface facing said rotor and subtending an angle of substantiallyfifteen degrees from a plane transverse to the axis of rotation of saidrotor, and a sizing ring releasably mounted between the outer peripheryof said ledge and said housing, said sizing ring being provided withbetween 116 and 200 frusto-conical shaped perforations, the diameter ofeach perforation at the inner surface of said sizing ring being withinthe range of one-quarter inch to three eighths inch and the diameter ofeach perforation at the outer surface of said sizing ring being greaterthan said diameter at said inner surface; said sizing ring beingprovided with a multiplicity of lugs projecting inwardly from said innersurface at least 0.05 of an inch, said lugs having a width correspondingto the length of an are along said inner surface subtending an angle ofapproximately five degrees around the axis of said rotor, said lugsbeing further arranged so that there is no more than one eighth of aninch of vertical clearance between the adjacent top and bottom portionsof successive lugs, said sizing ring and said housing defining anannular drain passage surrounding said sizing ring, said sizing ringhaving a height to internal diameter ratio in the range of from 0.33 to1 to 0.60 to 1.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 15 ROBERT C.

Knight 241-186 Miller et a1 241-186 Hammel 241-88 Pattinson 241-285Gamaunt.

Backlund 61 a1 241 88 Brophy 241-88 Wieczorek 241-285 Rohlinger et a1241-86 Coss 241-46 Dunwoody 241-86 X Hyde 241-245 RIORDON, PrimaryExaminer.

J. SPENCER OVERHOLSER, Examiner.

1. A COMMINUTING APPARATUS COMPRISING, A FLARED UPPER HOUSING HAVING ANOUTER ANNULAR RIM WITH A V-SHAPED PROJECTION DEPENDING THEREFROM; ALOWER HOUSING HAVING AN UPPER SURFACE WITH A CORRESPONDING ANNULARV-SHAPED NOTCH TO RECEIVE SAID PROJECTION WHEREBY THE FLARED UPPERHOUSING AND THE LOWER HOUSING ARE ALIGNED AND SEALED TOGETHER; A MOTORDRIVEN ROTOR ROTATABLY MOUNTED ON SAID LOWER HOUSING AND DISPOSEDBETWEEN SAID LOWER HOUSING AND SAID UPPER HOUSING; SAID UPPER HOUSINGBEING PROVIDED WITH A FEED CHAMBER AND AN ANNULAR LEDGE OVERLYING THEPERIPHERY OF SAID ROTOR; SAID LEDGE BEING PROVIDED WITH A FRUSTO-CONICALSURFACE FACING SAID ROTOR AND SUBTENDING AN ANGLE OF SUBSTANTIALLY 15DEGREES FROM A PLANE TRANSVERSE TO THE AXIS OF ROTATION OF SAID ROTOR; ASIZING RING RELEASABLY MOUNTED BETWEEN THE OUTER PERIPHERY OF SAID LEDGEAND SAID LOWER HOUSING, SAID SIZING RING BEING PROVIDED WITH BETWEEN 116AND 200 FRUSTOCONICAL SHAPED PERFORATIONS, THE DIAMETER OF EACHPERFORATION AT THE INNER SURFACE OF SAID SIZING RING BEING WITHIN THERANGE OF ONE-QUARTER INCH TO THREE EIGHTS INCH AND THE DIAMETER OF EACHPERFORATION AT THE OUTER SURFACE OF SAID SIZING RING BEING GREATER THANSAID DIAMETER AT SAID INNER SURFACE; SAID SIZING RING BEING PROVIDEDWITH A MULTIPLICITY OF LUGS PROJECTING INWARDLY FROM SAID INNER SURFACEAT LEAST 0.05 OF AN INCH, SAID LUGS HAVING A WIDTH CORRESPONDING TO THELENGTH OF AN ARC ALONG SAID INNER SURFACE SUBTENDING AN ANGLE OFAPPROXIMATELY FIVE DEGREES AROUND THE AXIS OF SAID ROTOR, SAID LUGSBEING FURTHER ARRANGED SO THAT THERE IS NO MORE THAN ONE EIGHTH OF ANINCH OF VERTICAL CLEARANCE BETWEEN THE ADJACENT TOP AND BOTTOM PORTIONSOF SUCCESSIVE LUGS, SAID SIZING RING, SAID UPPER HOUSING, AND SAID LOWERHOUSING DEFINING AN ANNULAR DRAIN PASSAGE SURROUNDING SAID SIZING RING,SAID LOWER HOUSING BEING PROVIDED WITH A WASTE OUTLET FROM SAID DRAINPASSAGE AND A WATER INLET; AND MEANS FOR DIRECTING A JET OF WATER FROMSAID WATER INLET INTO SAID DRAIN PASSAGE TANGENTIALLY OF SAID SIZINGRING TO FLUSH WASTE MATERIAL FROM SAID APERTURES AND SAID DRAIN PASSAGEINTO SAID WASTE OUTLET; SAID SIZING RING HAVING A HEIGHT TO INTERNALDIAMETER RATIO IN THE RANGE OF FROM 0.33 TO 1 TO 0.60 TO 1.